Cort leaned over the reception desk and whispered, despite there being no one else around, aside from their new ‘protection’, “What our status?”

Elema looked up and smirked. “Sherri is there and his ETA is ten minutes,” she whispered back. Elema leaned in towards him. “Why are we whispering?”

“Because it’s a surprise, silly.”

She burst into laughter and shook her head. “You’re impossible.”

Cort stood upright and, with a hand on the end of the counter spun himself around it. “Nah, just injecting some levity.”

“Well, you do it well,” she said. “Sherri’s going to update us when they have cleared through special customs.”

“Perfect.” He took a step backwards towards his office and then paused, before grinning. “I know she’s in on the surprise, as it were, but it’s still good, no?”

Elema beamed. “It’s great. She needs this. Though the one that I’m super curious about is Jourin. that’s going to be something else.”

“That it is. And you know, we needed this too. Something fun and a little less stressful, even if the logistics have been…”

“Increasingly complicated and slightly hilarious?” Elema suggested.

It was Cort’s turn to laugh. “Yes, both of those. Alright, back to the tasks while we have time. Let me know when Sherri updates.”

Elema gave him a salute with two fingers as Cor t backed towards his office. He just shook his head and carried on.

Cort Belanger, Executive Assistant to Lt. Gov.